International Helicopter Safety Team Safety Management System Toolkit

SMS: What it is and is not...
What it isn't:
What it is:
• Not a substitute for compliance
• Not a substitute for oversight
• Not a replacement for system
safety
• Not a requirement for a new
department
• Compliance is integral to
safety management
• An effective interface for
safety management
• SMS completes the system
safety circle
• SMS is a set of decision
making processes for senior
and line management
Safety Management Systems – Flight Standards
Federal Aviation Administration
Courtesy of Don Arendt, PhD, FAA SMS Program Manager
The Four Pillars of SMS:
The ICAO Document 9859 and FAA Advisory
Circular 120-92 states that SMS is structured upon
four basic components of safety management:
Safety Policy
Safety Risk Management
Safety Assurance
Safety Promotion
Safety Policy
Every type of management system must define
policies, procedures and organizational structures
to accomplish its goals. An SMS must have policies
and procedures in place that explicitly
describe responsibility, authority, accountability
and expectations. Most importantly, safety must be
a core value.
Safety Risk Management
A formal system of hazard identification and
management is fundamental in controlling an acceptable
level of risk. A well-designed risk management
system describes operational processes across department
and organizational boundaries, identifies key
hazards and measures them, methodically assesses
risk, and implements controls to mitigate risk.
Safety Assurance
Policies, process measures, assessments and
controls are in place. The organization must incorporate
regular data collection, analysis, assessment and
management review to assure safety goals are being
achieved. Solid change management processes must
be in place to assure the system is able to adapt.
Safety Promotion
The organization must continually promote, train
and communicate safety as a core value with practices
that support a sound safety culture.
6 SMS Toolkit